Diet and nutrition knowledge

There is no perfect dietary formula that suits everyone. A plan that can match your physical condition and lifestyle, and that you can adhere to for a long time without any burden is the nutritional choice that is most suitable for you. Any talk of "what you must eat/what you must not eat" without considering individual circumstances is just a hoax.

I have been doing public nutrition consulting for almost 6 years, and I have seen too many people ask for a "standardized healthy diet for a week", only to turn around because the recipe requires getting up at 6 a.m. to cook multi-grain porridge and eating oil-free boiled chicken breast at night. I had a friend who was doing back-end development. His physical examination revealed that his LDL was high. He asked me if I wanted to start a vegetarian diet right away. He even planned to give up rice. I stopped him directly - he works 996 every day and relies on takeout for three meals. How can he prepare a balanced vegetarian meal by himself? Later, they only made three very simple changes for him: when ordering takeout, he spent an extra 2 yuan to add a side of boiled vegetables, changed the milk tea from full-sugar creamer to 3-sugar fresh milk, and replaced the late-night skewers with multi-grain porridge from the convenience store downstairs two days a week. With these three requirements, he checked again three months later, and the indicators returned to the normal range, and he did not feel any grievance.

The most controversial question on the Internet right now is "Can we quit carbs?" In fact, there is no standard answer at all. Ketogenic enthusiasts who support low-carb can list a bunch of clinical data, saying that low-carb can quickly reduce body fat, control sugar and resist aging. I do have fitness friends who have lost 20 pounds on ketosis in 3 months and are in good spirits. However, the mainstream nutrition community who opposes it also has clear research support: long-term carbohydrate intake is less than 40% of total daily calories, which will affect serotonin secretion. Ordinary people are prone to depression and reduced concentration. Women of childbearing age are also likely to have menstrual disorders or even amenorrhea. I had a little girl I consulted before. She gave up carbohydrates for three months in order to look good in a wedding dress, and she lost 15 pounds. However, her aunt stopped for two months, and then added a fistful of rice every day, combined with moderate exercise, and it took half a year for her to regain her weight. Nowadays, there are also centrist "flexible carbohydrate" plans. People who exercise regularly eat more refined carbohydrates such as rice and noodles on training days to replenish energy, and switch to whole grains on rest days to control blood sugar. The adaptability is much higher. You can choose according to your own situation. There is no need to take one side and call the other side pseudoscience.

Don’t be superstitious about “super food” gimmicks. Many people now spend more on imported super food powder than on meals. A few years ago, when kale was popular, I had a customer who bought freeze-dried powder by the box. He frowned and drank it hard, saying it could cleanse the intestines and detoxify. In fact, if you check the Chinese food ingredient list, the dietary fiber, vitamin C, and potassium content of the same weight of rapeseed is no less than 5% different from that of kale. It only costs 3 yuan per pound. Throw a few handfuls when frying or cooking noodles, which is much more comfortable than drinking the astringent powder. There's also quinoa. If you get bloating and acid reflux after eating it, it's really not a bad idea. You can replace it with oats, brown rice or even corn and sweet potatoes. The ratio of macronutrients is not much different. There is no need to fight against your stomach for the sake of a "healthy" reputation.

To be honest, don’t worry about whether a meal is right or wrong. Nutrition is about the long-term average level. You are craving for a butter hot pot meal and a cup of full-sugar milk tea today. It is completely fine. You will not gain weight or have high blood fat because of this meal. As long as your diet is balanced most of the week, there will be no problem at all. I have seen many people feel guilty after eating something "unhealthy", and even induce vomiting, which leads to eating disorders. This is really not worth the gain.

Of course, it doesn’t mean that you can eat whatever you want. There are a few red lines that have been uniformly verified by the global academic community and must be observed: adults should not exceed 5g of salt per day, which is about the amount of a beer bottle cap. A long-term high-salt diet will significantly increase high blood pressure, Risk of gastric cancer; if the ingredient list contains non-dairy creamer, margarine, shortening, and hydrogenated vegetable oil, try to eat as little as possible. The trans fatty acids in these take more than 50 days to be metabolized by the human body. Long-term consumption will indeed increase the probability of cardiovascular disease. This is not controversial.

Every time I finish my consultation with people, I like to say this: Diet and nutrition are never rules and regulations used to restrict you, but are just tools to help you eat more comfortably and have more energy. You don't have to eat things you can't swallow every day in order to meet other people's health standards. After all, eating happily for a lifetime is the nutritional knowledge that is really useful to you.